Expert Reviews: Choosing the Ultimate RoboVac for a Spotless Home

Read update

• We’ve updated this buying guide with a variety of the latest and great robovac models. Give it a look!

Robot vacuums are convenient home appliances that keep your floors clean. They pick up dirt, hair, and other debris while navigating your home, making cleaning up a lot easier.

UPDATE: 01/24/2024

We’ve updated this buying guide with a variety of the latest and great robovac models. Give it a look!

• 
  
  Roborock

Roborock S8 Pro Ultra

Best Robot Vacuum Overall
See at Amazon

• 
  
  eufy

eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S MAX

Best Budget Robot Vacuum
$250 at Amazon

iRobot Roomba Combo j7+

Best Robot Vacuum and Mop
$699 at Amazon

• 
  
  eufy

Eufy Clean X8 Pro

Best Robot Vacuum for Pet Hair
$650 at Amazon

• 
  
  Ecovacs

Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni

Best Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum
$1200 at Amazon

What to Look for in a Robot Vacuum in 2024

With so many robot vacuums on the market, how do you choose the right one ? The answer depends, of course, on what you’re actually looking for. Most robot vacuums do the same thing—clean up dirt and other small debris while navigating around your home. However, some robot vacuums have additional features such as automatically going back to the charging dock and running on a set schedule, or even mopping the floor as well as vacuuming.

Since robot vacuums are designed to help keep your home clean, you should prioritize how well they clean first and foremost. A good robot vacuum needs to navigate your home while cleaning up dirt and debris easily. It shouldn’t constantly get stuck against an object that prevents it from cleaning. Robot vacuums do get stuck at times, but it shouldn’t happen often and a good one will learn where corners and objects are.

Your robot vacuum should be able to move from room to room, even if the flooring isn’t completely level around the home. You’ll also want a vacuum that won’t break itself, as in it won’t fall down a flight of stairs. These aren’t cheap, so you don’t want a vacuum that will break itself within a few months.

What prevents a robot vac from taking a damaging tumble requires smart sensors, which will help it to navigate around objects and furniture. All of our recommendations will have these smart sensors built-in, so no matter what you pick, you can take comfort in the fact that it won’t get stuck or fall onto a step and break itself.

With all this in mind, let’s take a closer look at some of the best robot vacuums around. Keep in mind that all our picks do an exceptionally great job of cleaning!

How-To Geek’s product recommendations come from the same team of experts that have helped people fix their gadgets over one billion times. We only recommend the best products based on our research and expertise. We never accept payment to endorse or review a product. Read More »

Best Robot Vacuum Overall: Roborock S8 Pro Ultra

Sarah Chaney / How-To Geek

Roborock’s 2023 flagship robovac, the S8 Pro Ultra , is a fantastic robot vacuum/mop combo that is chockful of helpful features to make your life easier. It boasts 6000Pa of suction, which is powerful enough to catch dirt, dust, pet hair, food crumbs, and other debris. There is also LiDAR navigation with 3D obstacle avoidance to map your house and get around any household item that may get in its way during the cleanup.

More importantly, the S8 Pro Ultra has a self-cleaning dock, which can wash and dry the mop during and after the cleanup, empty the dust and dirt from the vacuum, and refill the water. You can pretty much automate your cleaning routine and enjoy sparkling floors every day.

While mopping hasn’t always been a strong suit of robot vacuums, the VibraRise 2.0 Mopping System included in the S8 Pro Ultra works wonderfully and delivers some of the best mopping you will get in a robot vacuum. That said, as it can only lift the mop pad 5mm off the ground, it can’t always clear relatively high-pile carpets. So, if you want to avoid your expensive carpets getting damp or wet, it’s best to use the “avoid carpets” function.

The companion smartphone app is easy to use and offers various customization options to control how the robot vacuum does its cleaning. You will also be happy to know that the company releases frequent firmware updates for the robot vacuum to iron out any kinks that have been widely reported.

As you can expect, given its expansive list of capabilities and features, the S8 Pro Ultra costs a pretty penny. But this premium robot vacuum is worth the price tag. But it’s not perfect. It lacks a built-in camera for remote home monitoring like some of the other similarly-priced robot vacuums. You also can’t remove its mop pad, and the dock is quite bulky.

If the S8 Pro Ultra is out of your budget, you can consider Roborock’s Q Revo , which offers many similar features but, expectedly, doesn’t offer the same level of performance as the S8 Pro Ultra.

Best Robot Vacuum Overall

Roborock S8 Pro Ultra

The Roborock S8 Pro Ultra is a premium robot vacuum cum mop that delivers outstanding performance and a hands-free cleaning experience.

See at Amazon See at roborock See at Best Buy

Best Budget Robot Vacuum: eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Max

eufy

While the eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Max isn’t exactly a cheap robot vacuum, it’s affordable and offers good value for money. The eufy offering is also ultra-simple and perfect for anyone who doesn’t want to fiddle around with apps and settings. Plus, its slimmer profile helps it reach under couches and beds without trouble.

The 11S Max has a reasonable 2000Pa suction, and it does a good job on bare floors and efficiently picks up dirt and debris. You will also be happy to know that the built-in dust bin is big enough for a couple of rounds before you need to empty it.

Instead of a more sophisticated LiDAR system, the RoboVac 11S Max uses infrared sensors to navigate around your home as a part of bounce navigation. This isn’t very efficient, but it is enough to get the job done. Additionally, in place of a smartphone app, you get a remote to control the vacuum and set the cleaning mode and other options.

In other highlights, the eufy robot vacuum doesn’t require network connectivity. So, getting it up and running is as simple as plugging the charging dock, charging it, and using the remote to start a cleaning session. It can run for about 100 minutes on a single charge.

Sure, it’s far from the smartest or most feature-rich robot vacuum on the market. But if you want an affordable, no-frills cleaner for your home, the eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Max is a good option.

Best Budget Robot Vacuum

eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S MAX

eufy BoostIQ RoboVac 11S Max is a good choice for basic automated cleaning. It won’t leave a big hole in your pocket and is easy to use.

$250 at Amazon See at Eufy

Best Robot Vacuum and Mop: iRobot Roomba Combo j7+

Tyler Hayes / How-To Geek

The big selling point of the iRobot Roomba Combo j7+ is its ability to go from mopping floors to vacuuming carpets without any manual input. This lets you automate your entire cleaning schedule, although it’ll cost you a pretty penny—the j7+ clocks in at $1,100.

The only product on this list that’s more expensive is the Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra , but no doubt you’re getting a lot of great features for your investment. Aside from its ability to stow away its mop when moving onto carpet, the Combo j7+ offers a high-end avoidance and mapping system, the ability to empty its dustbin when done cleaning, and software that adapts to your home.

Of course, all those cool features mean nothing if the Roomba Combo j7+ can’t effectively clean your carpet. But, thanks to a sweeping edge brush, multi-surface rubber brush, and enough suction to remove just about anything tangled in your carpet, you can rest easy knowing your floors are nice and tidy after this Roomba runs.

For homes that have both hardwood and carpet, the versatility offered by the Roomba Combo j7+ is unparalleled. As long as you don’t mind the hefty price tag, this robot vacuum is the best way to automate all your floor-related chores.

Best Robot Vacuum and Mop

iRobot Roomba Combo j7+

$699 $1100 Save $401

It’s a bit on the pricey side, but the Roomba Combo j7+ can go from mopping to vacuuming without any manual input. That alone makes it worth a closer look.

$699 at Amazon See at bestbuy See at Target

Best Robot Vacuum for Pet Hair: eufy Clean X8 Pro

Dave McQuilling / HowToGeek

If you are tired of your existing robot vacuum struggling with pet hair, it’s time to get the eufy Clean X8 Pro . It comes with twin 4,000pa suction turbines and an Active Detangling feature to suck dust, debris, and pet hair efficiently without anything getting tangled in the bottom roller brush. This is possible thanks to the included comb that removes the tangled hair and fur from the brush as the X8 Pro cleans your house.

Besides its superior handling of pet dander , the eufy offering comes with a sleek and slim auto-empty station and built-in mop. While the auto-empty station is helpful and can store debris for up to 45 days, the mop isn’t super effective . It’s okay for removing surface-level grime, but not much more than that. It can’t also prevent itself from mopping carpets without a no-go zone. But that’s a problem with most robot vacuums in its price range.

In other features, the LiDAR sensors and AI obstacle avoidance work well and are effective in mapping your house and avoiding household items. The companion app is also easy to use and gives you plenty of control over how the X8 Pro cleans different rooms.

All in all, it’s an easy recommendation for pet owners. But if you want excellent mopping skills, you will be better off with our best overall or best robot vacuum and mop picks.

Best Robot Vacuum for Pet Hair

Eufy Clean X8 Pro

eufy Clean X8 Pro is fantastic at cleaning pet hair and dander, and its auto-empty station certainly comes in handy.

$650 at Amazon See at Best Buy See at Eufy

Best Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum: Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni

Joe Fedewa / How-To Geek

Ecovacs has some excellent robot vacuums in its portfolio, and the Deebot X2 Omni is no exception. It’s an all-around solid offering that looks different from the typical circular robot vacuums with its D-shaped design. Besides giving it an interesting look, the design is helpful in X2 Omni cleaning corners and edges.

It also boasts an impressive 8,000Pa suction to drag in all the dirt, dust, hair, and other debris from your floors. Additionally, you get spinning mop pads that do an excellent job of mopping. But while the X2 Omni can lift up the mop pads to avoid carpets when it detects them, it isn’t always able to clear carpets .

Another highlight of the X2 Omni is its self-cleaning ability. Besides transferring the contents of its internal dust bin to the dock, it can also clean the mop pads, dry them with hot air, and fill in the water for the next round of mopping. So you essentially get autonomous cleaning, at least until you need to clear out the dock’s dust bag and fill in the water.

There is also a camera on-board, which, apart from helping the vacuum navigate, can be used to watch your home on your phone or have two-way calls.

As you can expect, all these helpful features add up, and the Ecovas Deebot X2 Omni is expensive. But if you have the budget, the X2 Omni won’t disappoint you .

Best Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum

Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni

$1200 $1500 Save $300

There is much to like about the Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni. It has a versatile self-emptying station, powerful suction vacuum, and impressive mop pods.

Ecovacs $1200 at Amazon

Also read: